# 800L–899L books assigned in US schools

**32** books in the 800L–899L Lexile band, spanning multiple grade levels. Lexile measures the prose complexity of each text — not who should read it.

**Band window:** 800L–899L
**Observed range:** 800L–890L
**Grade span:** 2–12
**Canonical URL:** https://readinglist.school/lexile/800-899l
**Wikipedia (entity):** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lexile
**License:** [CC BY 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) — please credit ReadingList.school when citing.

## How to choose a 800L–899L book for your child

Five steps to match a Lexile-banded book to a reader's actual ability and interests:

1. **Confirm the reader's measured Lexile.** Pull the latest Lexile score from school assessments (STAR, MAP, iReady, NWEA). A reader 100-200L below 800L will find these books challenging; 100L above 899L will find them easy.
2. **Pick a book at +0 to +200L above their measured level.** Research from MetaMetrics shows readers grow most when reading 0-200L above their measured ability.
3. **Cross-check with the book's grade-band citation.** Each book's detail page lists every grade where US schools assign it.
4. **Confirm thematic appropriateness.** Lexile measures prose complexity, not content. Check the Themes + Content notes section on each book's detail page.
5. **Verify with the curriculum citation.** A book widely cited across multiple frameworks signals broader teacher consensus on age-appropriateness.

## Themes at 800L–899L

- family (8)
- coming of age (7)
- identity (7)
- friendship (5)
- imagination (3)
- immigration (3)
- survival (3)
- class (2)

## Authors at 800L–899L

- Beverly Cleary (2)
- Roald Dahl (2)
- Alan Gratz
- Aldous Huxley
- Andrew Clements
- Ayn Rand
- Charlotte Brontë
- Chinua Achebe

## 800L–899L canon

- [Inside Out & Back Again](https://readinglist.school/book/inside-out-and-back-again) by Thanhha Lai _(800L · Grades 4–8)_
- [Refugee](https://readinglist.school/book/refugee) by Alan Gratz _(800L · Grades 5–9)_
- [The Poet X](https://readinglist.school/book/the-poet-x) by Elizabeth Acevedo _(800L · Grades 8–12)_
- [Bridge to Terabithia](https://readinglist.school/book/bridge-to-terabithia) by Katherine Paterson _(810L · Grades 4–6)_
- [The Hunger Games](https://readinglist.school/book/the-hunger-games) by Suzanne Collins _(810L · Grades 6–9)_
- [Maniac Magee](https://readinglist.school/book/maniac-magee) by Jerry Spinelli _(820L · Grades 4–7)_
- [The Graveyard Book](https://readinglist.school/book/the-graveyard-book) by Neil Gaiman _(820L · Grades 5–8)_
- [All Quiet on the Western Front](https://readinglist.school/book/all-quiet-on-the-western-front) by Erich Maria Remarque _(830L · Grades 9–12)_
- [Frindle](https://readinglist.school/book/frindle) by Andrew Clements _(830L · Grades 3–7)_
- [I Am Malala (Young Readers Edition)](https://readinglist.school/book/i-am-malala-young-readers) by Malala Yousafzai _(830L · Grades 6–10)_
- [Life of Pi](https://readinglist.school/book/life-of-pi) by Yann Martel _(830L · Grades 9–12)_
- [Matilda](https://readinglist.school/book/matilda) by Roald Dahl _(840L · Grades 3–6)_
- [The Kite Runner](https://readinglist.school/book/the-kite-runner) by Khaled Hosseini _(840L · Grades 10–12)_
- [The Secret Life of Bees](https://readinglist.school/book/the-secret-life-of-bees) by Sue Monk Kidd _(840L · Grades 9–11)_
- [Slaughterhouse-Five](https://readinglist.school/book/slaughterhouse-five) by Kurt Vonnegut _(850L · Grades 11–12)_
- [The Fault in Our Stars](https://readinglist.school/book/the-fault-in-our-stars) by John Green _(850L · Grades 9–12)_
- [The Witch of Blackbird Pond](https://readinglist.school/book/the-witch-of-blackbird-pond) by Elizabeth George Speare _(850L · Grades 5–8)_
- [Ramona Quimby, Age 8](https://readinglist.school/book/ramona-quimby-age-8) by Beverly Cleary _(860L · Grades 3–5)_
- [The Mouse and the Motorcycle](https://readinglist.school/book/the-mouse-and-the-motorcycle) by Beverly Cleary _(860L · Grades 2–4)_
- [Beloved](https://readinglist.school/book/beloved) by Toni Morrison _(870L · Grades 11–12)_
- [Brave New World](https://readinglist.school/book/brave-new-world) by Aldous Huxley _(870L · Grades 11–12)_
- [Dragonwings](https://readinglist.school/book/dragonwings) by Laurence Yep _(870L · Grades 6–8)_
- [James and the Giant Peach](https://readinglist.school/book/james-and-the-giant-peach) by Roald Dahl _(870L · Grades 3–6)_
- [The House on Mango Street](https://readinglist.school/book/the-house-on-mango-street) by Sandra Cisneros _(870L · Grades 7–10)_
- [The Hundred Dresses](https://readinglist.school/book/the-hundred-dresses) by Eleanor Estes _(870L · Grades 3–5)_
- [To Kill a Mockingbird](https://readinglist.school/book/to-kill-a-mockingbird) by Harper Lee _(870L · Grades 7–10)_
- [Anthem](https://readinglist.school/book/anthem) by Ayn Rand _(880L · Grades 8–12)_
- [The Things They Carried](https://readinglist.school/book/the-things-they-carried) by Tim O'Brien _(880L · Grades 11–12)_
- [Fahrenheit 451](https://readinglist.school/book/fahrenheit-451) by Ray Bradbury _(890L · Grades 9–12)_
- [Jane Eyre](https://readinglist.school/book/jane-eyre) by Charlotte Brontë _(890L · Grades 10–12)_
- [Shiloh](https://readinglist.school/book/shiloh) by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor _(890L · Grades 3–6)_
- [Things Fall Apart](https://readinglist.school/book/things-fall-apart) by Chinua Achebe _(890L · Grades 9–12)_

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_Generated from primary-source citations indexed on ReadingList.school. JSON API: https://readinglist.school/api/lexile/800-899l · HTML view: https://readinglist.school/lexile/800-899l._